What is the difference between flexographic printing and relief printing in the application of self-

There are significant differences between flexographic printing and relief printing in the application of self-adhesive labels, and these differences are mainly reflected in the printing process, printing effect, scope of application and environmental protection.

First, the printing process is different

Flexographic printing:

Layout materials: Flexographic printing using soft layout materials, such as rubber or photosensitive resin.

Printing method: Transfer the ink to the flexible plate through the roller, and then transfer to the self-adhesive material. The pressure of flexographic printing is relatively light, which is conducive to protecting the surface of the self-adhesive material.

Features: plate making speed, low cost, easy to operate, and less color difference change in the printing process, suitable for standardized production.

Letterpress printing:

Layout material: The layout of letterpress printing is raised, usually using photosensitive resin letterpress.

Printing method: The ink is directly attached to the raised graphic part, and the ink is transferred to the self-adhesive material through pressure. The pressure of letterpress printing is relatively large.

Features: The ink color is full, but the grade of the printing equipment is uneven, and some equipment may not meet the needs of high-precision printing.

Second, the printing effect is different

Flexographic printing:

Printing quality: Flexographic printing can print high-quality text and patterns, bright colors and rich layers.

Ink layer thickness: The ink layer of flexographic printing is relatively thick, so that the print has a better three-dimensional sense and visual effect.

Letterpress printing:

Printing quality: Although the ink color of letterpress printing is full, it is easy to appear uneven or white ink layer when printing in large areas.

Detail performance: The printing effect for small text or patterns may not be as fine as flexographic printing.

3. Different scope of application

Flexographic printing:

Widely used: Flexographic printing process is widely used in self-adhesive label printing, especially for food packaging, pharmaceutical industry, electronics industry and logistics industry. Because of its light printing pressure, high printing quality and good environmental protection, it is favored by many industries.

Letterpress printing:

Specific applications: Letterpress printing also has a certain application space in self-adhesive label printing, but it may be more limited to some occasions where the printing accuracy requirements are not very high. With the development of technology and market changes, the market share of letterpress printing in self-adhesive label printing may gradually shrink.

Fourth, the difference in environmental protection

Flexographic printing:

Environmental benefits: Flexographic printing processes usually use water-based ink or UV ink and other environmentally friendly inks, in line with environmental requirements. In addition, flexographic printing produces relatively little waste during the plate making process.

Letterpress printing:

Environmental protection: Relief printing may be slightly worse than flexographic printing in terms of environmental protection. Some traditional letterpress printing processes may use non-environmentally friendly inks such as solvent-based inks, which have a certain impact on the environment and human health. However, with the improvement of environmental awareness and technological progress, more and more relief printing companies have begun to use environmentally friendly inks and equipment for production.

In summary, there are obvious differences in the application of flexographic printing and relief printing on self-adhesive labels. In practical applications, enterprises should choose the appropriate printing process according to their own needs and conditions to ensure the best printing results and product quality.